An example of a known multilayer inductor is described in Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2008-130970 (PTL 1). The multilayer inductor described in PTL 1 will now be described with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5 of the drawings.
FIG. 4 is an exploded perspective view of a laminate 111 of the multilayer inductor described in PTL 1. The laminate 111 includes magnetic layers 112a to 112l, inner conductors 114a to 114f, and via hole conductors B1 to B5. The magnetic layers 112a to 112l are insulating layers that are arranged in this order from the top to the bottom in the laminating, or stacking direction.
The inner conductor 114a is disposed on the magnetic layer 112d and one end thereof is drawn out to the right side of the laminate 111. The inner conductors 114b to 114e each loop through a length of one turn on the magnetic layers 112e to 112h, respectively. The inner conductors 114b to 114e respectively have connection portions 116b to 116e at one end thereof and connection portions 117b to 117e at the other end thereof. The inner conductors 114b and 114d have the same shape, and the inner conductors 114c and 114e have the same shape. The inner conductor 114f is disposed on the magnetic layer 112i and one end thereof is drawn out to the left side of the laminate 111.
The via hole conductors B1 to B5 connect pairs of the inner conductors 114a to 114f that are adjacent to each other in the laminating direction. Thus, a coil L that is spirally wound is formed in the laminate 111.